Fluid Safety Device

ABSTRACT

Devices for labeling and discharging a contaminated fluid, and discharging a contaminant to prevent a contaminated fluid from being used. In an embodiment, a discharging device includes a wax sealing an aperture at the bottom of a water bottle. The wax melts at a high temperature which may cause the water in the bottle contaminated, releasing the water from the water bottle. In another embodiment, a discharging device including an aperture in a DEF tank and a seal material sealing the aperture is used to discharge mistakenly filled contaminant, which dissolves the seal material. In another embodiment, a labeling device including an ink sealed in a wax wrapper is disclosed. The wax wrapper melts at high temperature, releasing the ink and labeling a fluid as problematic. By using a conductive ink with a non-conductive fluid, the labeling device can also be used for detecting and recording high temperature events.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This present application claims priority from U.S. provisionalapplication No. 62/117,847 having the same title as the presentinvention and filed on Feb. 18, 2015.

This invention relates to an apparatus and method for preventing acontaminated or deteriorated fluid from being used, more specifically,to an apparatus and method for labeling and discharging a contaminatedor deteriorated fluid or discharging a contaminant to prevent acontaminated fluid from being used.

BACKGROUD OF THE INVENTION

Materials may be contaminated or deteriorates when used in certainconditions, resulting in health issues or damages to a system. Forexample, as FDA has stated, exposing plastic beverage bottles in hightemperature may cause the beverage in the bottles contaminated.According to a study, at 158 ° F. (hot-car condition), antimonyconcentration could increase up to a 319-fold boost in levels of themetal, compared with levels in refrigerator condition. Antimony isnecessary for the manufacture of polyethylene terephthalate (PET), andhas been found to play a role in lung, heart, and gastrointestinaldiseases. Another compound, bisphenol A (BPA), which has estrogeniceffects and may increase cancer risk, is also used in plastic bottles,and even found in BPA free bottles. Under high temperature, BPA may bereleased from the bottles. In addition to antimony and BPA, phthalates,which are found in plastic bottles including BPA free PET bottles, canalso be released at high temperature. Phthalates are an endocrinedisrupter, like BPA, they can mimic estrogen.

In another example, DEF (Diesel Exhaust Fluid), which is used in a SCR(Selective Catalytic Reduction) device for removing NOx in a dieselengine, could be contaminated with diesel fuel or gasoline, whenrefilled mistakenly. If diesel fuel or gasoline enters the SCR device,it could be oxidized in the catalyst, especially in an ASC (Ammonia SlipCatalyst), releasing heat, causing fire hazards, and damaging thecatalyst.

To keep a contaminated or deteriorated fluid from causing health issuesor damaging a system in which the fluid is used, it is then a primaryobject of the present invention to provide a device to label or releasea fluid when exposed into harmful conditions in which the fluid could becontaminated or deteriorate, so that only fluid in good conditions isused.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a device torelease a contaminant when it is mistakenly refilled to protect a fluidfrom being further contaminated.

The method for labeling harmful conditions can also to be used forsensing the harmful conditions. Therefore, a further object of thepresent invention is to provide a sensing device that is able to detect,record, and report harmful conditions in which a material is exposed.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides devices for labeling and discharging afluid when exposed to an environment in which the fluid could becontaminated or deteriorates, and discharging a contaminant to preventit from causing damages in using the fluid. In an embodiment, adischarging device is disclosed including a wax sealing an aperture atthe bottom of a water bottle. At high temperature, which may causedeterioration of the water contained in the water bottle, the wax melts,releasing the water from the water bottle. In another embodiment, adischarging device including an aperture in a DEF tank and a sealmaterial sealing the aperture is used to discharge mistakenly filledgasoline. When gasoline is filled in the DEF tank, it dissolves the sealmaterial, releasing itself out from the DEF tank through the aperture.The discharging device can further include a float positioned in a bore,which has apertures sealed with the seal material and fluidly connectedto the DEF tank, a refill passage, and ambient. The float has an upperpart with a density lower than a contaminant, such as diesel fuel, alower part with a density in between the contaminant and DEF, and adissolvent hold in between the upper part and the lower part. When acontaminant is mistakenly refilled, the upper part moves upwards fromthe lower part, releasing the dissolvent, which dissolves the sealmaterial, releasing the contaminant from the DEF tank.

In another embodiment, a labeling device including an ink sealed in awax wrapper is disclosed. The labeling device can be positioned inside acap or at the bottom of a water bottle. When the water bottle is exposedinto high temperature, the wax wrapper melts, releasing the ink insideand labeling the water in the bottle as problematic. The labeling devicecan also be used for detecting and recording high temperature events. Inanother embodiment, an electrically conductive ink is sealed in a waxwrapper, which is positioned in a non-conductive fluid. A conductivitymeter is used for measuring changes in the conductivity of the fluid. Athigh temperature, the wax wrapper melts, releasing the conductive inkinside, which increases the fluid conductivity. As a result, a hightemperature event can be detected and recorded by measuring the fluidconductivity. Using multiple wax wrappers with different meltingtemperatures, multiple high temperature events can be detected andrecorded.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1a is a longitudinal sectional view of a water bottle with a safetymeans at its bottom;

FIG. 1b is a longitudinal sectional view of a water bottle showing itleaks at high temperature when its safety means melts;

FIG. 2a is a schematic representation of a DEF tank with a safety meansincluding a seal material and an aperture;

FIG. 2b is a longitudinal sectional view of a DEF tank with a safetymeans including a seal material and an aperture;

FIG. 2c is a longitudinal sectional view of a DEF tank showing the tankleaks when gasoline is refilled dissolving its safety means;

FIG. 2d is a longitudinal sectional view of a DEF tank with a safetymeans including a seal material, a refill passage, a bore in which afloat is positioned, and apertures;

FIG. 2e is a cutaway cross-sectional view of the DEF tank of FIG. 2 d;

FIG. 2f is a longitudinal sectional view of a float in a bore of asafety means;

FIG. 2g is a longitudinal sectional view of a float in a bore of asafety means showing a dissolvent in the float leaks when a contaminantis refilled;

FIG. 3a is a longitudinal sectional view of a bottle cap with a hightemperature labeling device;

FIG. 3b is a longitudinal sectional view of a bottle with a hightemperature labeling device positioned at its bottom;

FIG. 4a is a diagrammatic and longitudinal section view of a device fordetecting and recording a high temperature event;

FIG. 4b is a diagrammatic and longitudinal section view of a device fordetecting and recording multiple high temperature events.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Referring to FIG. 1 a, a water bottle includes a cap 101, a bottle body102 in which a water 105 is contained. On the bottom of the bottle body102, a wax 103 is used to seal an aperture 104. The melting point of thewax 103 can be adjusted according to the materials of the bottle body102, so that it is lower than a releasing temperature above whichcontaminant releasing rate from the bottle body significantly increases.For example, the melting temperature of paraffin wax can be adjusted to60° C., above which releasing rates of a few contaminants, such as BPAand phthalates, increase significantly. When the water temperature inthe bottle body 102 is above the melting point of the wax seal 103, thewax seal 103 starts to melt, resulting in a leak from the bottle body102, as shown in FIG. 1 b. In this way, water can only be hold in thebottle body 102 at a temperature lower than the melting temperature ofthe wax seal 103, and thereby water in the bottle body 102 can beavoided from being contaminated.

A similar method can be used to prevent mistakenly filled gasoline fromcontaminating DEF in a diesel engine exhaust gas processing system.Referring to FIG. 2 a, a DEF tank includes a cap 201, a fluidlevel/temperature sensor and coolant heater unit 202, a tank body 203,and a seal 205 for sealing an aperture 206 on the tank body 203.Referring to FIG. 2b , the seal 205 keeps a DEF 211 in the tank body 203from leaking out. It includes a material, e.g. polystyrene, which can bedissolved in gasoline. When a gasoline 210 is mistakenly filled in thetank body 203, as shown in FIG. 2c , the gasoline 210, which is floatingabove the DEF 211 due to its lower density, dissolves the seal 205, andleaks through the aperture 206. Draining of the gasoline 210 from thetank body 203 prevents it from entering a SCR system, and thereby,damages to the SCR system and related safety issues can be avoided.

When a fluid other than gasoline is filled and polystyrenes are used inthe seal 205, the fluid may not be able to break the seal 205 in shorttime. For example, when diesel is filled, especially when it is filledat low temperature, it may take a long time to break the seal 205. Toquickly dissolve the seal 205 at this situation, a structure depicted inFIG. 2d can be used. This structure includes a refill passage 242, and abore 241 in which a float 230 is positioned. The DEF tank is refilledthrough a port 223 on the top of the tank body 203, and a cap 222 isscrewed on the port 223. Referring to FIG. 2e , the refill passage 242has an aperture 207, and a seal 221 separates the aperture 207 from thebore 241. Similarly, two seals 225 and 227 are used to separatesapertures 226 and 227 from the bore 241. The seals 221, 225, 227 mayhave the same material as the seal 205. Referring back to FIG. 2d , thebottom of the refill passage 242 is fluidly connected to the DEF tankand the bore 241, while the seal 221 is shorter than the aperture 207,so that fluid flows into the bore 241 before it enters the DEF tank inrefilling.

Referring to FIG. 2f , the float 230 includes an upper part 232 with adensity lower than diesel, and a lower part 234, the density of which ishigher than diesel and lower than DEF. In between the upper part 232 andthe lower part 234, a dissolvent 231, such as gasoline, is contained inthe lower part 234. When only DEF is filled, the lower part 234 isfloating on the DEF surface, and the dissolvent 231 is hold inside thefloat 230. After diesel is added, referring to FIG. 2g , the upper part232 is floating on the surface of the diesel, while the lower part 234cannot. The difference in floating force moves the upper part 232 fromthe lower part 234, releasing the dissolvent 231 through an aperture 233when it is exposed. The released dissolvent then dissolves the seals205, 221, 226, and 227, releasing diesel fuel from the DEF tank.

In addition to draining a contaminated liquid or a contaminant, labelingthe contaminated liquid is another way to keep it from being mistakenlyused. For example, in a bottle of FIG. 1 a, an edible color enclosed ina wax wrapper can be used for labeling the water in the bottle body 102when it is exposed to high temperature. Referring to FIG. 3 a, an edibleink 302 sealed by a wax wrapper 301 is attached to the bottom of the cap101. When a bottle with the cap 101 is exposed to a high temperature,the wax wrapper 301 melts, releasing the edible ink 302 into the waterin the water bottle, labeling it as problematic. In this application, avariety of edible pigments, such as beta-carotene and xanthophyll can beused in the edible ink 302, and the melting temperature of the waxwrapper 301 can be adjusted according to the bottle materials.

The wax wrapper 301 with the edible ink 302 sealed therein can also bepositioned on the bottom of a bottle. Referring to FIG. 3b , in such abottle, the wax wrapper 301 is attached to the bottom of the bottle body102. If the temperature of the water 105 is higher than its meltingpoint, then the edible 302 is released from the wax wrapper 301,labeling the water 105 as problematic. Compared to positioning the waswrapper 301 under the cap 101, attaching it to the bottom of the bottlebody 102 is able to elongate the time the bottle exposes to hightemperature, since it needs longer time for the water 105 to reach themelting point of the wax wrapper 301.

A similar method as that used for labeling deteriorated fluid can alsobe used for detecting and recording temperature anomalies. Referring toFIG. 4a , in such a device, a conductive fluid 403 is sealed in a waxwrapper 402, which is positioned on the bottom of a fluid container 401filled with a non-conductive fluid 404. Two electrodes 406 and 405extruded into the non-conductive fluid 404 are electrically connected toa conductivity measurement unit 410 located in a device container 409. Aseal 408 and a seal 407 are placed around the electrodes 406 and 407 tokeep the fluid container 401 from leaking. An adhesive layer 411 on thetop of the device container 409 is used to stick the device on asurface. In an application, whenever a temperature of the non-conductivefluid is higher than the melting temperature of the wax wrapper 402, theconductive fluid 403 is then released into the non-conductive fluid 404,and thereby a high conductivity measured by the conductivity measurementdevice 410 is indicative of a high temperature event.

Multiple high temperature events can also be detected and recorded.Referring to FIG. 4b , in an exemplary device, a conductive fluid 415sealed in a wax 416 and a conductive fluid 417 sealed in a wax 418 arepositioned on the bottom of the fluid container 401. The wax 416 has alower melting temperature than the wax 418. When the temperature of thenon-conductive fluid 404 increases higher than the melting temperatureof the wax 416 and lower than that of the wax 418, the wax 416 melts,releasing the conductive fluid 415 into the non-conductive fluid 404. Asa result, when a high conductivity is measured by the unit 410, a hightemperature event is detected. If the temperature of the non-conductivefluid 404 further increases higher than the melting temperature of thewax 418, the conductive fluid 417 is released, resulting in a higherconductivity of the fluid 404. In this way, a different high temperatureevent is detected when a higher conductivity value is obtained by theunit 410.

In the temperature event detection devices of FIG. 4a and FIG. 4b , analarm signal can be generated when a high temperature event is detected.Also, a wireless communication circuit can be included in theconductivity measurement unit 410 for sending sensing results to areader, and an RFID sensing circuit can be used in the wirelesscommunication circuit for passively detecting the conductivity of thefluid 404 without enclosing a battery in the devices.

While the present invention has been depicted and described withreference to only a limited number of particular preferred embodiments,as will be understood by those of skill in the art, changes,modifications, and equivalents in form and function may be made to theinvention without departing from the essential characteristics thereof.Accordingly, the invention is intended to be only limited by the spiritand scope as defined in the appended claims, giving full cognizance toequivalents in all respects.

1. A fluid container for storing a fluid, comprising: a container bodyfor holding said fluid; and an marking device for making changes in saidfluid when an event happens including a solute material that is solublein said fluid sealed in a wrapping material which is insoluble in saidfluid, wherein said marking device is fluidly connected to saidcontainer body and said wrapping material in said marking device meltswhen a temperature, in which said fluid container is exposed, is above amelting temperature of said wrapping material, releasing said solutematerial into said fluid.
 2. The fluid container of claim 1, whereinsaid solute material includes an ink with a color different from saidfluid.
 3. The fluid container of claim 1, wherein said marking device ispositioned in said fluid.
 4. The fluid container of claim 1, furthercomprising a cap through which said fluid is filled into said fluidcontainer, wherein said marking device is positioned on an inner surfaceof said cap.
 5. The fluid container of claim 1, wherein said wrappingmaterial includes a wax.
 6. The fluid container of claim 1, wherein saidsolute material has a conductivity different from said fluid.
 7. Thefluid container of claim 6, further includes a conductivity measurementdevice generating a sensing signal indicative of said conductivity insaid fluid.
 8. The fluid container of claim 7, wherein said conductivitymeasurement device further includes a controller configured to generatean alarm signal when said sensing signal indicates that saidconductivity in said fluid is out of a predetermined range.
 9. A fluidcontainer for storing a working fluid used in an application system,comprising: a container body for holding said working fluid; and a fluidsafety device for preventing a contaminant in said working fluid fromdamaging said application system including an aperture through which afluid can be released from said container body, and a first sealingpiece, which loses its sealing function in a dissolvent, positioned onsaid aperture sealing it to prevent said working fluid in said containerbody from leaking therethrough, wherein said fluid safety device ispositioned in said container body with said first sealing piececontacting said contaminant in said working fluid and losing its sealingfunction for releasing said contaminant from said container body. 10.The fluid container of claim 9, wherein said first sealing piece haspolystyrene incorporated.
 11. The fluid container of claim 10, whereinsaid working fluid is a urea solution and said contaminant includesgasoline.
 12. The fluid container of claim 9, wherein said working fluidis a urea solution and said dissolvent is diesel.
 13. The fluidcontainer of claim 9, further comprising a refill passage through whichsaid working fluid is refilled into said container body and a bore insaid fluid safety device with a float positioned inside, wherein saidfirst sealing piece is fluidly connected to said bore.
 14. The fluidcontainer of claim 13, wherein said float includes an upper part whichhas a density lower than said contaminant, a lower part which has adensity higher than said contaminant and lower than said working fluid,and said dissolvent hold in between said upper part and said lower part.15. The fluid container of claim 14, wherein said dissolvent isgasoline.
 16. The fluid container of claim 14, wherein said bore isseparated from said refill passage by a second sealing piece, whichloses its sealing function in said dissolvent.
 17. The fluid containerof claim 14, wherein said bore is separated from said container body bya third sealing piece, which loses its sealing function in saiddissolvent.
 18. The fluid container of claim 14, wherein said bore isshorter in length than said refill passage.
 19. A fluid container forstoring a working fluid, comprising: a container body for holding saidworking fluid; and a fluid safety device fluidly connected to saidcontainer body including an aperture through which all fluid can bereleased from said container body, and a sealing piece, which loses itssealing function when a temperature of said working fluid is higher thana damage temperature, positioned on said aperture sealing it to preventsaid working fluid in said container body from leaking therethrough,wherein said damage temperature is lower than a contaminationtemperature above which said working fluid is significantly contaminatedby contaminants released from said container body.
 20. The fluidcontainer of claim 19, wherein said working fluid is a drinking waterand said sealing piece includes a wax.